Runnig Through Blurred Realities
(2024) MKVM13 20241Media and Communication Studies
Department of Communication and Media
- Abstract
- Digital sports technologies, such as the Strava app, have become the norm rather than the exception in physical activities and are introducing new realities to human existence. This thesis in Media and Communication studies examines the experience of females using the fitness app Strava to track their running activities. It investigates their engagement with the platform’s affordances and features, self-reflexivity, and health perceptions.
The theoretical framework situates the rise of self-tracking technology within the context of individualization of health and healthism. It discusses the recent inclusion of females in marathon participation and conceptualizes self-tracking technologies as media, using the theoretical lens of... (More) - Digital sports technologies, such as the Strava app, have become the norm rather than the exception in physical activities and are introducing new realities to human existence. This thesis in Media and Communication studies examines the experience of females using the fitness app Strava to track their running activities. It investigates their engagement with the platform’s affordances and features, self-reflexivity, and health perceptions.
The theoretical framework situates the rise of self-tracking technology within the context of individualization of health and healthism. It discusses the recent inclusion of females in marathon participation and conceptualizes self-tracking technologies as media, using the theoretical lens of Actor-Network Theory to address the interplay between human and non-human actors in shaping social phenomena.
This thesis employed a qualitative multi-method approach, combining the media go-along method and interviews with 11 female runners. The findings demonstrate how lived experiences, such as running, have become intensely mediated experiences and that Strava serves as a platform for female runners to engage in reflexive processes through different forms of surveillance to both understand and construct themselves. They develop a deeper appreciation for themselves beyond their physical appearance, redefine their approach to nutrition, and view health as an unstable process requiring continuous effort and adaptation.
The thesis contributes to the field of existential media studies, illustrating how mediated self-tracking technologies introduce individuals to new forms of existential anxieties. Without recording and tracking activities on Strava, the significance of lived experiences diminishes, and the media becomes a fundamental basis for existence. In addition, the thesis highlights the usefulness of the media go-along method in gaining a deeper understanding of meaning-making and usage of self-tracking apps. In conclusion, it demonstrates that in the case of Strava, mediated experiences weigh heavier than lived experiences, as individuals seek confirmation of their activities and capabilities through different forms of mediated surveillance in the pursuit of self-optimization. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
http://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/9151484
- author
- Örvarsdóttir, Lena LU
- supervisor
- organization
- course
- MKVM13 20241
- year
- 2024
- type
- H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
- subject
- keywords
- Self-quantification, surveillance, sporting bodies, digital health management, existential media studies
- language
- English
- id
- 9151484
- date added to LUP
- 2024-06-04 16:33:11
- date last changed
- 2024-06-04 16:33:11
@misc{9151484,
abstract = {{Digital sports technologies, such as the Strava app, have become the norm rather than the exception in physical activities and are introducing new realities to human existence. This thesis in Media and Communication studies examines the experience of females using the fitness app Strava to track their running activities. It investigates their engagement with the platform’s affordances and features, self-reflexivity, and health perceptions.
The theoretical framework situates the rise of self-tracking technology within the context of individualization of health and healthism. It discusses the recent inclusion of females in marathon participation and conceptualizes self-tracking technologies as media, using the theoretical lens of Actor-Network Theory to address the interplay between human and non-human actors in shaping social phenomena.
This thesis employed a qualitative multi-method approach, combining the media go-along method and interviews with 11 female runners. The findings demonstrate how lived experiences, such as running, have become intensely mediated experiences and that Strava serves as a platform for female runners to engage in reflexive processes through different forms of surveillance to both understand and construct themselves. They develop a deeper appreciation for themselves beyond their physical appearance, redefine their approach to nutrition, and view health as an unstable process requiring continuous effort and adaptation.
The thesis contributes to the field of existential media studies, illustrating how mediated self-tracking technologies introduce individuals to new forms of existential anxieties. Without recording and tracking activities on Strava, the significance of lived experiences diminishes, and the media becomes a fundamental basis for existence. In addition, the thesis highlights the usefulness of the media go-along method in gaining a deeper understanding of meaning-making and usage of self-tracking apps. In conclusion, it demonstrates that in the case of Strava, mediated experiences weigh heavier than lived experiences, as individuals seek confirmation of their activities and capabilities through different forms of mediated surveillance in the pursuit of self-optimization.}},
author = {{Örvarsdóttir, Lena}},
language = {{eng}},
note = {{Student Paper}},
title = {{Runnig Through Blurred Realities}},
year = {{2024}},
}